Squee! Pre-July Ramblings

Is it July yet?














June 16/07

I've decided to go ahead and do 3 sleepless nights in a row so I can see the boys play again, especially on Kirk's birthday on July 4th. I am having trouble with the Greyhound schedules though, as they keep changing things on me. I have to buy my tickets within the next few days to get the discounts, so I am hoping once I buy they don't change things making it more difficult to get to where I need to be. Wish me luck. With that I'm off to the gym as I have just over 2 weeks to fit into my rock chick outfit inspired by the grooviest rock chick ever Rock Esq.


June 4/07

I haven't given up hope of making it to the Foxwoods and Westbury shows yet. It's not looking good because I would have to pull 3 all-nighters in a row to make it happen, but my fingers are crossed for a solution to my predicament.

I'm going to have to travel extremely light this time, just a small backpack, since I don't want to be stuck looking for a place to store my stuff or impose on others. Trying to cram in 3 days worth of gear and supplies into the one lonely backback may prove more difficult than the logistics of getting a Greyhound bus to the casino in time to get in the line up at the Fox Theatre.

The good news is that I have a ride sorted out to get to Barrie. I just have to figure out how to get home.


May 23/07

Squee! I got an awesome seat for the Barrie gig. I wasn't home this morning to be able to do the legacy presale, but a friend was trying for me on my computer. I left her with explicit instructions on where I would be willing to sit on the floor, and she couldn't get anything matching my specifications to come up. She even tried the seats in the stands and only got section 101, three sections from the stage. Then, just after 11 am she got a fourth row in section C pop up, and when she tried to buy it she was locked out of Ticketmaster. She tried to go back in, but it kept coming up with the Internet Explorer error message. She deleted the cookies, and tried in Mozilla. Still locked out. When I got back home just before noon I thought I'd check out the next presale window but my computer was still locked out of TM. Some Rockband Loungers discovered that if you opted for the fan club bundle, which meant shelling out another $30 US for another fan club membership, they could pull up front row on Tim's and Garry's side. So one of them asked if anyone still wanted a ticket, and I threw my hand up. It was a kumbaya ticket buying love-in over in the Rockband Lounge. Special smooches to my ticket buyer. I hate the idea of having to pay another membership fee to get the seat, but it's still far cheaper than going through a broker. And even bad presales tend to be easier than public sales, so I am grateful we have that opportunity through the fanclub.

So, I am now the proud owner of a front row seat, but the extra cost on the ticket means I no longer have anything in the travel fund to and from Barrie. It's going to be down to the wire again to pull these road trips off. I shouldn't have turned down that dominatrix a few years back. I could have funded INXS concert trips for the next few years off what I would have made. I need to get really crafty on how to earn extra $$ in the next three weeks before I have to buy the bus tickets. Fingers crossed.


May 16/07

I'm working very hard at coming up with a way to get to CT and NY for the shows. The logistics of getting to Mashantucket, CT by bus from here is a bit daunting. It involves several transfers under 20 minutes, which usually spells disaster. And getting from there to Long Island isn't going to be easy either. There are only two buses I can take to get me back to New York City in time to get out to Westbury for the gig, and they both leave early in the morning. If I end up going I'll have to contend with walking around with my luggage for two days, and finding a place to store my gear for the gigs.

The presale for the Barrie, ON gig will be coming up in a while. The good news is that fan club members were given more notice of the pre-sales for Regina, Barrie, and Sault Ste Marie than we have ever had to date. The bad news is that the pre-sale is taking place on the only other morning in May that I won't be by a computer to buy a ticket. I was hoping to get a decent seat for that one in case the CT and NY gigs don't work out for me. My fingers are crossed that the public sale will not be a complete bust.


May 10/07

When I learned that the public sale for the Foxwoods Casino gig was going to take place at 8 am on May 8, I was saddened because that day was one of only two mornings in the entire month of May that I was not going to be near a computer until later in the day. I figured a fan club presale would be the only way to secure a ticket for such an intimate venue. On May 7 INXS.com announced there would be a fan club post-sale coming as soon as the details could be worked out, and I jumped for joy at the chance of getting a ticket at a later date. However, my joy was short lived because within a few hours that post-sale became a members sale concurrent with the casino's public sale. Given that the tickets for this gig are will-call pick-up only, it was hard to get someone else to buy a ticket for you. Then sometime overnight, that members only sale became a presale, with the public sale pushed back to May 10. It was very frustrating for the fans who signed on to the casino ticketing system only to find out too late that there was no ticket sale taking place that day there.

Fortunately I did manage to get one of the much coveted GA tickets during the public sale on the May 10. Foxwoods were great about matching the number of fan club GA tickets, and released more front of house tickets then they do for most gigs. It's very much appreciated.


May 5/07

Not too long after I wrote the post below, the Bluesfest gig was confirmed, and eight others gigs were listed for July 2007, including some more Canadian dates. It turns out that the Calgary gig they listed for July 11 is a private function, so there are eight gigs in total we can attend:

04 Jul 2007 - Manshantucket, CT, Foxwoods Casino
05 Jul 2007 - Westbury, NY, North Fork Theatre at Westbury
07 Jul 2007 - Muskegon MI, Heritage Landing
08 Jul 2007 - Milwaukee, WI, Summerfest
10 Jul 2007 - Regina, SK, Brandt Centre - Regina Expo Park
13 Jul 2007 - Ottawa, ON, Cisco Systems Bluesfest/Lebreton Flats
14 Jul 2007 - Barrie, ON, Molson Centre
15 Jul 2007 - Sault Ste. Marie, ON, Steelback Centre

I already have a ticket to the Bluesfest gig, and I instantly knew I wanted to go to the Barrie show as well. It would be cool to do the trifecta of Ontario gigs, but Sault Ste. Marie is about a 9-10 drive from Barrie, very difficult to make in one day, and the bus fare to get up there and back home is more expensive than a return trip to New York City. So I started thinking about maybe going to the CT and NY gigs instead, especially since they are much more intimate venues than an arena show.

We got just over half a days notice for a presale for the NY gig, and as usual, especially when you are dealing with Ticketmaster, the presale nerves kicked up a notch as I sat refreshing the fan club ticket page waiting to be get the passcode. At first I kept getting sixth and seventh row seats, and discarded them. Then I started getting fourth row, and decided to keep trying my luck at a better seat. Then I got a third row seat but somehow managed to loose the connection. A few minutes later I got back into the ticketing system again only to find no single seats available. Much cursing began as I kept at it. Finally I got a row D ticket come up, and decided to throw out the line one more time, and BINGO! Row B! My hands were shaking as I tried to complete the transaction. I accidently clicked on mail to the US, so my shipping address was not coming up. I panicked and then saw the "change delivery method" link, clicked on it, reselected Canadian Post, and my account information came up. That was a very close call.

The tickets have not yet gone on sale for the Barrie or Foxwoods gigs. The Barrie venue does not have the gig listed yet, but the Foxwood public sale begins on May 8th when I am in a very important community meeting. I am wondering if we are going to get a presale for the Foxwoods date. Fingers crossed I won't have trouble getting a ticket.


May 2/07

Squee more dates, but GRRRR no confirmation:

Dates are trickling out for more gigs in July 2007. It's getting very very difficult to plan road trips when they dribble out the gig dates. Not everyone has the money to purchase tickets all over NA just to ensure they get to see the band play.

INXS has not yet been officially confirmed for the Ottawa Bluesfest. Tickets have been on sale for more than a week already. And public sales are looming for the gig on July 5 at the North Fork Theatre in Westbury, NY and one on July 7 at the Muskegon Summer Festival in Michigan. It should not be this difficult to get timely information on tour dates. Thank goodness my forum friends scour the internet every day looking for breaking news.

If I knew Ottawa was the only Canadian date, I might buy a ticket for the gig in Westbury, NY. Fingers crossed that if there are more gigs to come in Canada, they announce them before tickets for the gig at the North Fork Theatre go on sale.

INXS Fanclub DVD, evil MSN, and cat fights

Happy New Year! I hope you're all surviving the dreaded INXS concert withdrawal. So far there are no gigs listed until Europe in June 2007. I do hope the guys are enjoying some well deserved time off.

Recently a few things have taken my mind off how painful INXS concert withdrawal can be:

The elusive INXS Fanclub DVD is arriving in mailboxes, and we get some behind the scenes content as well as a lengthly question and answer period with the band members. Reading the reports on the forums posted by those who have already watched it is like really good foreplay. I can't wait to get my hot little hands on this baby. Even the vertical hold problem on my television, which leaves the top third of the screen all blurry, is not going to get in the way of my enjoyment of this long awaited krack.

And just after Xmas there was the hilarious cat-fight at the Fortune 448 Forum over Lukas Rossi between someone called Pink Mermaid, who said she was Regina Russell, and someone referring to themselves as Lukas Rossi, who it turns out was actually Lukas's girlfriend Kendra. It's some of the most entertaining forum content I've seen, and I haven't laughed that hard in a long time.

And there was the controversial MSN artist of the year poll, in December 2006, that ended up being a battle between INXS and the David Crowder Band (DCB from here on). Early on INXS were in top place, and then suddenly DCB galloped into a huge lead overnight. The MSN poll mysteriously disappeared mid-month after a number of people wrote to MSN suggesting something had to be wrong because, while the poll may not be scientific, it was statistically almost impossible for DCB to have gained that much of a lead in such a short period of time. When the poll started up again DCB acknowledge that INXS fans "started chipping away at our lead." Yes we did. Vote by slow vote over the course of about a week, we drew even with them. Which is quite a feat given how far ahead they were. We got the word out to fans via the forums to vote whenever they could.

Then we started seeing cheap shots at INXS on DCB fan sites and blogs, and suggestions by DCB themselves that INXS must have their whole management and PR team working on this. The funny thing is that on the official INXS website they did not even list the MSN poll. INXS fans did not do likewise and slag off DCB. We showed class, and focussed on making our favourite band proud.

Then fans of DCB accused INXS fans of using robotic voting, whatever the hell that is, and a few of their faithful posted a script for auto-voting on a DCB band blog. I am a very frequent visitor to the majority of INXS forum sites, and I never once saw a single auto-voting script on any of those sites. If they had appeared, the mods would have taken them off. It was DCB fans who used the script first, and as early as December 27 a fan bragged about it on a DCB blog. In the final days of the poll after millions of votes were being logged in for DCB, numerous people contacted MSN about the cheating, and got no satisfactory reponse. Then some INXS fans decided to fight fire with fire and converted the auto-voting script that was continually being posted on DCB fan sites. Again, not once did I see that script on any INXS related site. Most of the ardent INXS fans did not want to stoop to cheating, and continued voting manually, vote by slow vote. In the end DCB won by a small margin. The use of auto-voting by DCB fans is acknowledged by a member of the band in a blog here. Quite hypocritical that a Christian rock band thought their fans cheating to get them the win was entertaining and fun. Shame on them.

On The Road With Ember: Switched On Tour, Leg Three

What a whirlwind trip! I covered about 1200 miles in a matter of 4 days. And it was so much fun. The band was simply phenomenal. They were great in February, even sweeter in May, and this time round, wow, they were even tighter. JD is so confident now that is utterly intoxicating. And it has left me wanting more! Please don't wait so long to come back next time guys.

For whatever reason, the guys returned to pretty much the same set list they were using in February, and did not play some newer songs like Hot Girls and Perfect Strangers this time around. I thought both of those songs sounded fabulous live.

More when I get a second.

Toronto

Sudbury

Hamilton

Oshawa

Homeward Bound

INXS - Oshawa, ON, General Motors Centre, November 14, 2006

Concert Review:


Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil’s Party
Mystify
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Kick
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap
New Sensation
Folsom Prison Blues
Never Tear Us Apart
Don’t Change

(Disappear out of the set list tonight.)

INXS - Hamilton, ON, Copps Coliseum, November 13, 2006

Concert Review:



Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil’s Party
Mystify
Disappear
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Kick
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap
New Sensation
Folsom Prison Blues
Never Tear Us Apart
Don’t Change

INXS - Sudbury, ON, Sudbury Arena, November 12, 2006

Audio-blogging is no longer an available feature on blogger.com, so I can no longer call in reports from the road.

Concert Review:


Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil’s Party
Mystify
Disappear
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Kick
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap
New Sensation
Folsom Prison Blues
Never Tear Us Apart
Don’t Change

Get Well Tim, Switched On Tour Third North America Leg: here we go again!

First off, I'm sending a big hug to Tim. It was very upsetting to hear how badly he's hurt his knee, and how much pain he is in. I'm sending lots of love and healing his way, and I hope the surgery goes well in October and that he is on the mend as quickly as possible.


I didn't think I was going to get the opportunity to see INXS play again this year, and I'm thrilled I get to make one final road trip in 2006!

I managed to drum up enough funds to get a ticket for each of the three Ontario gigs on the Third Leg of the North American Switched On Tour:

November 12 in Sudbury, at the Sudbury Arena
November 13 in Hamilton, at Copps Coliseum
November 14 in Oshawa, at the Oshawa Centre Sports and Entertainment Facility

I can't believe how lucky I was with the INXS fan club pre-sales this time around, because I got two front row seats for this leg! It will be a great early birthday present to be frolicking down front twice. The Hamilton pre-sale didn't go as smoothly, but I'm in the third row of the stands not too far from the right side of the stage.

The freakiest thing happened after I bought my ticket for the Sudbury show. I got front row on the right floor, and I was talking to a friend on the West Coast. She asked me jokingly to see if I could get her a seat near me. I went back into the ticketing system and nine minutes after the first purchase I got the seat right next to the one I bought, on the very first attempt. She told me to buy it for her and she would see about coming out East, then she realized that she would need to get another seat for her sister, so I went back into the ticketing system. Seven minutes after the second ticket purchase, on the very first attempt, I got the seat next to that second front row one, and bought it too. So I ended up with three front row seats next to each other, all purchased individually over the course of sixteen minutes. If I had any cash on hand I would have run right out and bought a lottery ticket.

Happy Birthday JD and 33 Toasts to INXS

I hope you had a fabulous birthday JD! And best wishes for the coming year.

On his birthday last year on Rockstar: INXS, JD got a cake in the shape of an ass, there was a cake fight, he ended up sitting naked in the cake, and he woke up with cake in his ass. Many of us are wondering what kind of celebration he had after the Brisbane gig this year. I’m sure it was another memorable night. And it probably involved a cake and his ass again.

In honour of his birthday, I baked a small cake, with a mic stand on top. I had a blast slowly licking the frosting off the cake. I don’t have a camera, or I’d have taken a picture, but I used this clipart for the design:



And JD’s birthday is a really good occasion to drink to him and to INXS. I’m toasting with some Alexander Keith’s. Here’s a toast for each of JD’s years:

1. INXS is the best live band ever.

2. On September 20, 2005, JD was chosen to be the lead vocalist for INXS, and the band was once again complete. And now “This is not the ending, this is only the beginning” of the next book in the INXS story.

3. INXS has the best fans.

4. Writer + writer = f**king amazing spark! I can’t wait to see more of what JD’s collaborations lead to on the next INXS album.

5. INXS has an amazing crew of people working for/with them, who make magic happen behind the scenes. The show could not go on without them all.

6. Here’s to many more sessions of microphone stand sex when the song ‘Taste It' is played live. The flicking of JD’s tongue and fingers, and the licking and rubbing of the mic stand is mesmerizing and worthy of applause and praise.

7. INXS have been great with fans, and they have touched many of our lives very deeply.

8. The mic stand sex during 'Taste It' is worth at least one more toast. I’m sure it has fuelled many a passionate night after an INXS gig, with some husbands/boyfriends/girlfriends thankful for how hot INXS gigs can get. It’s also a gem of a cache for masturbatory pursuits for those of us who are single.

9. Andrew is the Mozart of Funk, and is the dynamic powerhouse at the centre of it all. And he has the sweetest smile.

10. The song-writing clinic during week six of Rockstar: INXS showed us a hint of JD’s honesty and integrity.

11. Tim is the riffmaster, who plays with sexy panache.

12. JD is humble, and gracious, and very generous. And he fits a band of gentlemen and consummate professionals like a glove.

13. Jon has a gift for keeping the beat with the utmost flair.

14. We voted for the dream. And embraced a dreamer who wasn’t afraid to shoot for his dreams, and has inspired us to dream the dream.

15. Kirk saxes us up and makes the music shine.

16. JD’s wing tattoos are a thing of beauty, and are wonderfully symbolic.

17. Garry is the Sultan of Bass, and coaxes luscious notes from his instrument.

18. "We are the people we've been waiting for." And it really does come down to US.

19. JD looks great in a suit, and rocks a pink shirt and pink tie like I’ve never seen any other man do.

20. INXS = Hot Boys, and we’re liking it, liking it.

21. The Switched On Tour has brought many forum folks together. Friendships have been forged, and wonderful memories have been made.

22. We answered the call JD. We will follow you to the ends of the earth, and we have. Or at least as far as our bank accounts will allow.

23. Batshit crazy. Crazy batshit. It’s all good baby.

24. JD’s a trouper. Even when he hurt his knee he insisted on going on with the show, and pushed through the pain. We appreciate the dedication, but we’d have loved him all the same, maybe more, if he had sat on a stool for the whole gig. We’d have still felt the connection.

25. The adrenaline rush I get from being at an INXS gig makes me feel like I’m twenty years younger. Thanks so much.

26. JD’s seductively wicked smile and soulful brown eyes makes me feel like a teenage girl again. And it’s a good feeling.

27. INXS bared their souls to the world to do Rockstar: INXS, and we love them all the more for having the courage and conviction to have done that.

28. It’s cool that with INXS back on the road touring there are old and new fans in attendance.

29. It’s especially cool that parents are bringing their kids to the INXS gigs.

30. Alexander Keith’s is a yummy beer. So is Keith’s Red.

31. An upcoming INXS gig is great incentive to get to the gym.

32. INXS music has stood the test of time, and is a testament to an amazingly creative band.

33. Here’s to the future, and many more years of remarkable music.

INXS Concert Withdrawal, Perfect Strangers video, and more North American dates in November!

It's been 102 days since my last INXS gig. The withdrawal pangs are getting worse by the day.

It's been great to get all the juicy tidbits from concert goers in Asia and Australia. And I love that Tod Burr, Jon's drum tech, keeps us up to date on what's going on. We love the INXS techs!

They just announced today that there will be a third North American leg of the Switched On Tour in November. No doubt further dates will dribble out as they get confirmed, but at the moment they have three Ontario gigs listed: Sudbury, Hamilton, and Oshawa. Unfortunately I don't drive and it will be hard to get to those three Ontario venues without a car. And things are really tight right now, so I'm not sure I'll be able to go. A number of my forum mates are planning on heading down to Myrtle Beach and the Florida shows. It would be a great birthday trip, but it's not in the cards right now. Hopefully I'll have enough time to get the funds together to get tickets to the Ontario shows and worry about getting there later.

I finally got to see all of the 'Perfect Strangers' video. Maybe it was just the quality of the video posted up at Australian SONY music, but it didn't capture the energy or the intensity of the song performed live. And I just don't get the whole plot of the chick in the bathroom applying lipstick, who then forgets the video camera, then suddenly appears on stage filming.

If you are interesting in reading about my musings on things non-INXS related, you can find them here at: Ember's Musings

Reflections on my batshit crazy road trips: INXS Switched On Tour, Leg Two

The road was long, and the party is over.

Wow. Another amazing series of road trips to see INXS has come to an end. I can't believe it went by so quickly. And this time around, with ten gigs in fifteen days, it was a real whirlwind adventure. I was rushing from gig to gig, and barely got the chance to appreciate where I was. By the time I was leaving Cleveland, I was emotionally and physically exhausted, my bronchial asthma had flared up again and I was feeling taxed. I don't know how the band does it, because I could barely keep up, and I didn't have to perform to a paying audience when I got to where I was going. I have a renewed respect for what they do. Remind me when they play North America next time to schedule some down time in amongst all the gigs.

I also realized how foolish it was to think I could do these last road trips all alone, and on such a tight budget. Batshit is powerful man. It makes you do the craziest things. Thanks to everyone who helped me out along the way. You know who you are, and I truly appreciate all you did.

Combining the two legs of the tour, this year I have seen eighteen INXS gigs, spent five weeks on the road, and travelled through/to fourteen American States and four Canadian Provinces. I don't think I could ever express in words how monumental this has been for me. It’s been like a thrill ride that has woken me up. I know I could never express to INXS just how much these gigs have meant. All the times they took to chat with me have touched my life very deeply. They are an amazing band, a fabulous group of men, and their crew is the best ever. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

And to all my forum friends, who I met along the way, please let me express how much you enriched the whole adventure. It would not have been the same without you all. I love every single one of your batshit crazy asses!

I'm finding it much harder to rank the gigs this time around. I'm not going to add them to my rankings from February, because I think these were very different shows. In February, it was a test run for INXS on the road. JD was getting comfortable with his position, and they were getting into the swing of touring again. Now, JD has grown into his role as front man, and INXS is a well-oiled machine. Anyone would be hard pressed to guess that JD has only been a member of the band since September 2005. They've come so far. In February the gigs were great. In May, the gigs were sweeter and slicker, and JD's performances were even more raw and intense. As an aside, the Detroit show in February is still a standout for me. It was one of those gigs that only comes along every now and then. I'm fortunate that I was able to experience the magic of that night.

I decided to separate out the theatre shows from the arena ones for ranking, since the experience was so very different. I love how close we can get to the band in theatres, but there is a freedom I see when they are on stage in arenas that is quite lovely to witness.

Theatre Shows:

Cleveland, OH: my last gig of the tour, and an amazing performance to have witnessed.

New York City, NY: my first gig of the second leg, and a high energy show from start to finish, complete with lots of attention from the band.

Arena Shows:

Montreal, QC: Such spectacular sound. The best I heard on both legs of the Switched On Tour.

London, ON: The most emotional performance I have seen this year.

Kitchener, ON: An amazing front row experience. Thanks guys.

Fredericton, NB: My first front row ticket ever, and the first gig on the Canadian tour!

Ottawa, ON: INXS played my hometown again!

Toronto, ON: High energy, and a playfulness that was a joy to watch.

Moncton, NB: An appreciative crowd, and a high energy show.

Halifax, NS: An emotional performance in JD's home Province, great intensity, but marred by some sound problems.


Favourite live INXS Songs on the second leg of the Switched On Tour: ‘Never Tear Us Apart,’ ‘Hot Girls,’ and ‘Perfect Strangers’

Favourite warm up act: Stabilo. By a long shot.

Least favourite warm up act: Scott Stapp. He was trying far too hard to connect with the audience, and all the grinding he was doing was revolting. JD has more sex in the tip of his little finger than Stapp has in his whole body.

Place I most want to go back and explore more: Halifax. When it’s not cold and raining.

Dirtiest bus stations: New York, NY and Toronto, ON.

Cleanest bus stations: Moncton, NB and Halifax, NS.

On The Road With Ember: Switched On Tour, Leg Two

September 2/2006
While I was celebrating JD's birthday last night I accidently deleted this posts and most of the reviews on my blog from the second leg of the Switched On Tour. I'm busy restoring the posts, but for now I only have the audio blogs, set lists and a few pictures back up.

November 10/06
It's been pretty crazy here since the computer crash in September, right after drunken blogging cockup. I have just a bit more work to do on this entry.

New York, NY



Fredericton, NB



Moncton, NB



Halifax, NS



Montreal, QC



Ottawa, ON



Toronto, ON



London, ON



Kitchener, ON



Niagara Falls, ON



Cleveland, OH



Homeward Bound

INXS - Cleveland, OH, State Theatre, May 19, 2006

Sorry, there was no audio blog for this gig. I had an amazing encounter in Cleveland that was very intense, and I didn't get the chance to phone in a review.


Concert Review: Cleveland Really Does F**king Rock!

When I got into Cleveland I wandered over to the preshow meet up spot, The Winking Lizard, but couldn’t find any INXS fans, just lots of Cavaliers fans (Cleveland’s basketball team) and some Cleveland Indians fans (baseball). Both teams were playing that night, so the downtown area was hopping.

I’m not even going to bother discussing Scott Stapp as the opening act. I tried to like him, but just could not.

During the public sale I managed to get a pit seat for this show, but found myself nearly going deaf during the opening act. CumonCumon from Rockband ended up with an extra ticket for the show, and before INXS went on I was able to move up one row and further right, on the aisle, directly in line with Garry and Tim. And directly behind Inzane! I had joked with him about the moan happening earlier and earlier, and tonight JD only made it to twelve seconds before he let out a reverberating moan that pierced the theatre.

‘Suicide Blonde’ kicked off the gig in high gear. The sound wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t as stellar as I had been led to believe. Kirk was wearing a tan jacket, raspberry paisley shirt, and blue jeans. Jon had the iron cross shirt on, and black pants. JD wore the lace up jeans, a blazer, and a dress shirt. Andrew was wearing jeans, a jacket, and black T-shirt. Garry had on those lovely brown pants, a jean jacket, and a white sleeveless T-shirt. I'm glad that Garry got the memo that he looks good in sleeveless shirts. Tim was decked out in blue jeans, a cool blazer, and an open necked dress shirt.

JD was really into ‘Devil’s Party’ tonight. And Tim was all over the stage.

‘Mystify’ was very emotional, and full of a raw intensity I had not seen before. And the song got a great crowd response.

Tim’s was shredding the riffs with his new flashy guitar on ‘Hot Girls.’ JD wasn’t doing any riding it tonight, but we got plenty of JD and Tim loving. And Tim and Garry were really rocking it at one point.

Before they started ‘By My Side’ JD said “You guys are just like...awesome,” and then he asked if Cleveland rocks, which was answered with loud screams. Tim was wild on his marlin guitar, and Garry was shaking it on the risers.

JD vocals were delivered with a lot of power on ‘Afterglow.’ Garry and Jon were trading feck faces throughout the song.

During ‘Taste It,’ Garry and Andrew were smiling and rocking. We got some great sax sex stage right, in front of me. Kirk was smoking hot, and made everyone around him hot. He misted the audience with his reed mister from time to time. There was another awesome guitar solo by Andrew, with support from Tim on the marlin tonight. I was so captivated by the opened legged sexophone work tonight I missed what I was told was a night of mild mic stand sex.

JD was in top form on ‘Original Sin.’ During the song he took Inzane’s Canadian flag and put it in his back pocket. He was over our way a fair amount. Garry had his foot on the monitor in front of me, and was swaying and plucking. At one point Kirk was saxing with Garry.

The vocals on ‘Hungry’ were awesome tonight too. And Garry was kicking ass on his bass, and Tim was having a great time with his shiny guitar. Tim looked lovely in that open necked shirt.

During ‘Never Let You Go,’ JD was singing to Jon, and Jon was singing back. JD kissed a little girl who brought flowers up to the stage, and gave her his bracelet. Garry spent a good portion of the song on the ramp swaying to the rhythm.

‘Need You Tonight’ was a major highlight of the night. Tim was playing to a little girl, then he went over to play with Kirk at stage right. JD milked the end of the song a bit tonight.

Another highlight for me was ‘What You Need .’ Garry and Andrew were rocking face to face, and Tim's guitar work was awesome. Tim and Kirk were at the back of the ramp again tonight, saxing and wailing on the guitar. At one point Garry wiped his forehead on the back of Tim’s shirt.

There was some awesome sax work on ‘Kick’, and Tim was riffing away on the marlin .

Then it was “Time to go to church,” as they began ‘Devil Inside.’ I love going to the Church of INXS. JD lit up a smoke during the song. Garry was very animated on this one, playing mostly with Tim and Jon.

During ‘Pretty Vegas’ JD did a crowd romp right in front of me for the first time in 18 gigs. And I ended up getting trampled by security as he did. I wound up on the ground, with my signs, and bags everywhere. We got a lovely moment with Tim and Garry, and Kirk and Andrew rocking. When they lined up at the end of the song, JD said “Cleveland really does f**king rock!” And Jon did some pelvic thrusts.

For the encore JD came out in a light-coloured asshat, with a cigarette and a drink. The encore was a bit of a blur. I was still recovering from landing hard on my ass during Pretty Vegas, and I was also fighting to keep my place as more people came to the front near the stage. It was also running through my mind that this was the last gig I was going to. I managed to snap a few photos with a disposable camera.









After the show I brought my thank-you sign for the techs up to DrumTech, and he gave me one of Jon’s sticks he had put aside. I was able to get that one signed by Jon. Thanks to INXS security I got a very rarely seen Andrew Farriss guitar pick. And I got a chance to really talk to JD for the first time. I was left with an even deeper appreciation for him as a man and as an artist. He is the most intense, generous, and gracious man I’ve met in the longest time. He’s a very special spirit, and if he asked, I would totally follow him to the ends of the earth.


Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil's Party
Mystify
Hot Girls
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Kick
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap
New Sensation
Amazing Grace
Never Tear Us Apart
Don't Change

INXS - Kitchener, ON, Kitchener Memorial Auditorium, May 16, 2006

Sorry there was no audio-blog for this gig. My phone card was running low.

Concert Review:

Nov 10/06
I'm almost done. The computer crash in September meant I had to rewrite a huge section of this whole review. It should be up as soon as I get back from the Ontario gigs. Here's what I have so far:

Another great show! And my second front row seat ever! I was just a tad to the left of Kirk tonight, and we got lots of love from Kirk who loved my signs (more about that later), some love from Garry and his swivelling hips, and lots of love from The Pretty who came over to us quite often during the show. I even got eye-f**cked twice! JD was very animated tonight, and very aroused as well. And tonight I did not take any notes at all during the gig. I wanted to be absorbed in my front row experience. The only time I took my eyes off the stage was to select one of the twelve signs I brought. I was perfectly positioned to take some photos, but there was a security guard right in front of me the whole gig.

‘Suicide Blonde’ opened the show, with the usual power punch it has.

Tim was wearing blue jeans and a T-shirt. Garry was in tight blue jeans, and an orange red sleeveless top. JD had those lovely lace-up jeans on, and a black striped shirt. Andrew was wearing jeans and a black T-shirt. Kirk was wearing blue jeans and a dress shirt. And Jon had a charcoal T-shirt and black pants.

I looked at Tim’s new G&L guitar very closely. He has three Z shaped pickups on it, and it has the most exquisite and very distinct sound.

I got sticked tonight!!! I held up a sign asking Jon for a stick just as he stood up from the kit after ‘Pretty Vegas’. After they had lined up, he acknowledged my sign, motioned with one stick as if to ask if I really did want it, and I smiled, nodded and very enthusiastically waved my sign, and he came over and tossed one to me. I had to leave right after the show so I couldn't get him to sign it but I'm thrilled with my new acquisition. That stick remained tightly clutched in my hand for several hours after the gig. I was hoping to catch one of Tim's new marlin guitar picks, but no luck. He only flicked 2 over our way.


Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil's Party
Mystify
Hot Girls
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Kick
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
Trust In Me rap
New Sensation
Amazing Grace
Never Tear Us Apart
Don't Change

(Perfect Strangers was out tonight. Nine gigs and counting and I still haven't had the chance to hear either Elegantly Wasted or God's Top Ten. I've resigned myself to the fact that I'm just not going to get to hear either live this year.)

INXS - London, ON, John Labatt Centre, May 15, 2006

Audio Blog: INXS, John Labatt Centre, London, ON, 15 May 2006

Concert Review:

Stabilo sounded great tonight. The acoustics were really good. I had a look around the arena, and it was a really good turnout, and the whole bottom tier was packed. I was sitting in the stands in house right, close to the stage, with Catatonic from Rockband, and her husband. And let me tell you, Catatonic has one hell of a whistle on her!

It was funny because tonight we only got to ten seconds on the countdown before we got that heavy moan from JD behind the curtain. I joked with Inzane after the show that it appears it is getting more and more difficult for him to hold back on that moan as the tour progresses.

The night began with a very impressive ‘Suicide Blonde,’ and Garry was all splay legged and wild on the bass. He was wearing those lovely brown pants, a tan jacket, and a brown T-shirt. Kirk was dressed in blue jeans, a plaid blazer, and a dress shirt. Andrew had on a black shirt and jeans. Jon was wearing white jeans, and an open necked dark shirt. Tim had on the Celtic cross jacket, blue jeans, and a charcoal army style shirt. JD was wearing a white jacket, the lace-up jeans, and a black shirt.

During ‘Devil’s Party,’ JD did a nice little dance over the ramp. And Kirk’s sax work was great.

On ‘Mystify’ Tim was wailing on the shiny new metallic guitar. I love the sound that comes out of it. JD commented on the size of the crowd. He also noticed someone had a poster in the audience about Warren the rabbit, and there was a funny exchange about that for a moment.

‘Hot Girls’ was fairly sedate tonight. During ‘Perfect Strangers’ I noticed how many 448 paddles were on the floor. The stage lights picked them up really well. JD made a line change that he was taken to doing lately: “The syrups so much sweeter when it comes from a butterfly.” Kirk gave us more great sax, and Tim was rocking the new guitar

‘By My Side’ was performed beautifully, and was one of the highlights of the night. We got a caution from JD before the song began: “No exposing of your breasts please, unless it’s absolutely necessary.” And as soon as JD said this, Kirk pulled down JD’s shirt and exposed his nipple. It was very funny.

‘Afterglow’ was very moving. Garry was doing a lot of swaying and swivelling. It’s always awesome to watch Andrew work his magic on the keyboards. By the end of the song we were really moved by the tears streaming down JD’s face. It was the most emotional moment I’ve experienced yet at an INXS gig. There was something very raw, intense and vulnerable about that moment that was very evocative.

‘Taste It’ was delicious tonight, and we got some wicked harmonica, Garry and Andrew rocking together, and Tim down front riffing. Kirk was saxing stage right, then moved to stage left and was saxing on his back. There were huge cheers for Jon during the band introductions. And we got a phenomenal, kick-ass solo from Andrew. JD decided to have a smoke, so we got no mic stand sex again tonight. Some of us are wondering if he broke off the relationship with Ms. Mic Stand.

‘Original Sin’ was the second highlight of the night for me. JD was trying to play Tim’s guitar between Tim’s legs. JD and Jon shared a little moment, and Jon had the biggest smile. Garry was up on the risers shaking it, making tons of feck faces. And The Pretty was aroused. He did the twirly dance at the end, and it looked a bit like the when bees attack arm flailing.

JD started off in a lower key on ‘Hungry’ tonight. It sounded good. We got the crossed sticks from Jon at the break, but no twirls.

‘Never Let You Go’ was the third highlight of the night. Tim was down playing to the front row. Garry was swivelling his hips. There was some JD and Kirk man love, as JD hugged Kirk from behind while he was playing the sax. Then Garry and Kirk were rocking together.

There was a huge crowd response at the start of ‘Need You Tonight.’ Both Kirk and Tim were playing to the front rows. Kirk and JD were sliding, and Tim joined in the sliding. Then Tim and JD were playing sliding tag. We got some impressive pelvic thrusts from Sherriff Tim during the line “gonna live my life.” And for the first time in many nights, JD finished with the last line of the song.

‘What You Need’ was another outstanding song tonight. There was a mini love-in between the guys: Tim and JD, JD and Garry, and JD and Kirk. JD did a crowd romp down house right to the stands right in front of us. Tim got up the ramp first, met Kirk, and they both moved to the top. Garry was shaking it at down at stage left near us.

During ‘Kick’ we got a DrumTech sighting. Kirk was playing the sax sitting on Andrew’s stool, next to Andrew who was crouching while playing the keyboards.

As they started ‘Devil Inside’ JD called out “Time to go to church.” I never tire of hearing him say that. It’s the way he says it. Tim was wailing on the marlin, Garry and Jon were rocking, and JD was down at the front of the stage on the right.

There was another huge response when the band started ‘Pretty Vegas.’ Kirk and Andrew were playing together on one side of the stage, and Tim and Garry were on the other side. JD did a crowd romp house left, and came back with a big pink bunny in hand. Garry looked at the bunny, smiled, and shook his head.

Before the encore started a Corona beer ended up all over the stage. JD stood there for a moment, and said “Canada. Canada. Canada. Man.” Then “Thank you for your support,” and finally “Thanks to you my dreams came true.” It was very moving, and I got misty eyed.

The Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap was another highlight. The delivery tonight was perfection. I could listen to JD rap for an entire concert. I’d love to hear him to a spoken word kind of thing someday, like Henry Rollins does.

‘New Sensation’ was hot hot hot tonight. Garry came out for the encore with a sleeveless shirt so we could see the arm ink. It looks great.

Andrew strummed his guitar during ‘Amazing Grace’ tonight. It was a nice touch.

During ‘Never Tear Us Apart’, Tim had his arms crossed and was really milking the moment. And getting a big crowd response the more he did.

‘Don’t Change’ was the final highlight of the night. It was a wonderful version tonight, with another power ending.

On the way back to the hotel I saw the coolest vehicle in a parking lot near the venue. It had a huge 448 on the side, along with PAV - Pretty Apprehension Vehicle.

After the show I found out that Tim’s shiny new guitar is a G&L one. I told him it sounded like pure liquid sex oozing out notes, and he liked that description. I also got to finally tell him that I sent him a virtual hug every time he had to send someone home on Rockstar. He gave me a hug. I got to meet Kerry, Jon’s new wife. She’s very sweet. It turns out that Jon had seen one of my signs in Fredericton, and mentioned it to her. It read “Congratulations Jon and Kerry. Wishing you many happy years together.” I also got to talk with Kirk for a little bit.






Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil's Party
Mystify
Hot Girls
Perfect Strangers
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Kick
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap
New Sensation
Amazing Grace
Never Tear Us Apart
Don't Change

INXS - Toronto, ON, Air Canada Centre, May 14, 2006

Audio Blog: INXS, Air Canada Centre, Toronto, ON, 14 May 2006

Concert Review:

Nov. 10/06
This review is almost finished. It was one of the ones I had to rewrite because I lost most of the files. It should be up as soon as I come back from the Ontario gigs. Here is a portion of what I've written:

This was the biggest concert I have ever been to inside. It was packed right up to the rafters, and we were crammed in like sardines on the floor. I originally could only afford a seat in the third tier, but thanks to Inzane, I got a floor seat.

I was feeling so crappy, and had such a hassle with ACC security tonight, that it took me until the end of Suicide Blonde to be right there in the moment. Unfortunately I missed almost all of Stabilo tonight trying to sort out my seat. In the process I finally got to meet JDIMH.

The countdown began, and at nine seconds, there was this seductive moan that got everybody’s attention.

I wasn’t feeling well enough to go to the Rockstar: INXS after-party at the Guvernment. Before going back to the Ryerson dorm to sleep, I got a chance to talk briefly with Kirk, and Garry after the show. And I had a great discussion with Tod, the Drum Tech about teching, the state of the music business, and Sponge Bob. He’s such a sweetie. I also got the chance to talk with April, who is eloquent, and has such a sparkle in her eyes. Oh, and JD made me a newspaper cell-phone, which I stored safely away in my luggage. I’m going to try and figure out how to harden it.


Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil's Party
Mystify
Hot Girls
Perfect Strangers
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Kick
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap
New Sensation
Amazing Grace
Never Tear Us Apart
Don't Change

INXS - Ottawa, ON, Scotiabank Place, May 12, 2006

No audio-blog tonight because I have no voice.


Concert Review: An INXS love-in in Canada's Capital

Stabilo opened the show in style, and got us warmed up for INXS. They gave a big shout out to the Senators which made my sister very happy. She’s a huge Sens fan. I appreciate that INXS had a Canadian band opening for them on this part of the Canadian tour. Thanks to my sister I got some comp tickets in the stands closest to the stage in house left. I had a perfect view of the stage, and also a clear view of Jon all night.

Welcome back to Ottawa guys!! Thanks you for playing my hometown again after so many years. And I was so happy it was a good turnout, with hardly any empty seats in the first tier. And the crowd was very appreciative, and was cheering wildly when the count down began, with wild screams from about 30 seconds on. This may not have been as good as Montreal sound wise, but it ranks up there with the Bell Centre gig for the best Canadian show so far. The screens were a bit fuzzy tonight though.

JD was wearing his black lace-up pants, a black blazer and a delicious pink shirt and pink striped tie. I’ve never seen a man look better in pink. Jon had on black pants and a charcoal T-shirt. Kirk was wearing a striped dark plaid blazer, blue jeans, and a khaki dress shirt. Tim was adorned in the Celtic cross jacket, blue jeans and a long sleeve shirt. Garry was wearing jeans, a black leather jacket, and a brown T-shirt. Andrew had on a jacket, jeans, and a black T-shirt.

During ‘Suicide Blonde’ I noticed they had some cameras filming tonight. I guess we’ll find out what for later.

JD lit up a cigarette again tonight during ‘Devil’s Party.’ He had a really nice moment with Andrew during the song.

During ‘Mystify’ Kirk and Garry were rocking out, then JD joined the party. Tim had his legs splayed, rocking out, and JD played Tim’s guitar for a bit.

There was no intro to ‘Hot Girls’ tonight. JD joined the back-up singers on their riser, so we didn’t get any mic stand riding either. JD did a spoken word thing at the end of the song, but I couldn’t quite make it out.

And we got treated to an extra song in the set list tonight: ‘Perfect Strangers’!! JD asked if we want to hear another one off the new record, and I squeed in anticipation of which song we were going to get immediately after 'Hot Girls.' And when the drums started I recognized that it was 'Perfect Strangers,' and it was still really quiet in the arena so when I squeed really loudly everyone around me turned to look at me and even Kirk looked up into the stands. The vocals were excellent tonight. And Garry was a little more animated, giving us feck faces and rocking out on the risers, and singing along. It was especially hot watching him sing the “melting wax” line. Hell yeah baby! JD plucked a cowboy hat from the audience, wore it for a bit, and then Garry picked it up and put it on. As the song wrapped up JD said “We’ve been working so hard we forgot to say hello.” This got big cheers, and he mentioned we were a big crowd.

The bass dominated ‘By My Side’ tonight. JD said he was happy to be in Canada, and that we should all follow our hearts.

The bass was up really loud during ‘Afterglow ’and created a bit of sound fuzz. By this song it was getting so hot in Scotiabank Place that my straightened hair was curling up. JD finished the song on a lovely mini falsetto note. And at the end Andrew gave us an East Indian inspired keyboard piece.

We got a swivelling hipped Sultan of Bass down at stage left during ‘Taste It’. JD did a very funky rap intro to the band. He said “How you feeling right now?” and Kirk kissed JD’s hand. For Andrew he said “A man who needs no introduction.” Indeed! And he didn’t miss Garry tonight! JD was too busy laying down on the ramp, having a smoke, to have mic stand sex tonight. Honey, smoking comes after sex. There was some wicked guitar work by Andrew again tonight. Garry and Jon were rocking out together. Then JD went and hung out by Andrew for a bit, and gave him a drag on the cigarette before he started back in with the vocals. He trailed the mic stand behind him, showing her no love tonight.

‘Original Sin’ got a big crowd response. JD was twirling around the stage a lot tonight, and put his arm around Tim a few times. And Garry was rocking out stage left. We got an elusive Thirteen sighting, as we watched him tuning Andrew’s guitars behind a stack of amps.

On ‘Hungry’ JD’s vocals were much better tonight, but still a bit strained. Andrew kicked it up a notch on the keyboards tonight, and we got stick twirls from Jon.

During ‘Never Let You Go’, JD put his arm around Tim during the “could never let you go” part, and he proceeded to play Tim’s guitar with the mic. Kirk was down on the boxes near us at stage right, and JD's “Come on Kirk” preceded a wicked sax interlude.

‘Need You Tonight’ was another crowd favourite. We got more man love between Tim and JD on this number. And the “you’re one of my kind” was left out again tonight.

JD did a crowd romp right in front of our section during ‘What You Need.’ Tim and Kirk ended up on top of the ramp behind Jon, saxing and riffing.

It was fun to watch Jon singing along to ‘Kick’ tonight. Andrew was showing the tambourine who's the boss, and Kirk got away from Andrew again tonight, but we got a cool keyboard/sax dialogue going on there for a bit.

I love it when it’s “Time to go to church.” JD was doing a few standing jumps during ‘Devil Inside.’ And he was playing Tim’s guitar again. Kirk was wailing on the guitar tonight. It was hot.

During ‘Pretty Vegas’ Andrew was way out front, and he came right up to the front row at one point. There was a nice moment with Kirk and Andrew, and Tim and Garry rocking out. JD did a crowd romp stage left onto the floor and into the stands. And we got a big honking “whoo” tonight from Jon, and Garry pointed to him right at that moment. JD thanked us for being a great crowd, and said it had been an awesome time.

Before they started the encore, JD chilled on stage again, smoking. He said that it had been a fantastic ride, and then launched into the Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap. Toward the end Jon came out moving to the rap to big cheers from the audience.

For ‘New Sensation’ Garry came out in a sleeveless T-shirt, and I finally got a really good look at all of the new tat. A very cool Chinese dragon wrapped around the Celtic Cross. There was a lovely moment where the cameras gave us a close up of Andrew grooving at the keyboard

My sister was impressed with JD’s vocals on ‘Amazing Grace.’

‘Never Tear Us Apart’ got a huge crowd response, as much as for ‘Pretty Vegas’ and ‘Need You Tonight’. The disco ball seemed extra glittery tonight. And once again JD’s vocals on this number were outstanding. My sister was particularly impressed. Kirk gave us another amazing mouth-watering sax solo. And Tim milked the moment for all it’s worth.

JD looked great in an open shirt during ‘Don’t Change’. We could see April taking photos stage left. At the end of the song Jon kept going, and everyone else joined in.

JD was really moved by it all at the end. And so were we. I hope you enjoyed Ottawa guys. We loved having you here. I went to sleep on cloud nine last night. And I woke up this morning to find that 'Devil's Party' had entered the top 20 charts here at #13!


Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil's Party
Mystify
Hot Girls
Perfect Strangers
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Kick
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap
New Sensation
Amazing Grace
Never Tear Us Apart
Don't Change

INXS - Montreal, QC, Bell Centre, May 11, 2006

No audio-blog again tonight. Sorry for that.

Concert Review: Un concert spectaculaire

Wow. Just wow. Montreal is the best Canadian gig so far without a doubt, even though I was not on the floor tonight. The sound was simply spectacular. You could hear every note, every instrument, even each cymbal clearly. I was blown away. It’s the best sound I’ve heard yet on the two tours. And the side screens were crystal clear too.

I arrived a few minutes into Stabilo’s set, and noticed how great the acoustics sounded from the hallway outside the arena. I’ve been really enjoying their performances. And while Stabilo was performing tonight I noticed how small their drummer’s kit is compared to Jon’s. It looks like a kiddy sized one.

I was about fifteen rows up on the right side of the stands in the section closest to the stage, and I had a completely unobstructed view of the whole stage. I was glad I wasn’t in the front row tonight, because there was a considerable space between the first row of seats and the barricade. When the countdown began, there were whoops and whistles, and a sudden crowding of bodies into that space in front of the barricade. You couldn’t move down there when the timer got to two minutes.

From my seat I could see the guys gathering at the side of the stage before taking their places. They were looking great as usual. Jon was wearing a black shirt, and I finally got a chance to see the sparkly pants! They really need to come with a warning they are so bright. No wonder Jon kept his sunglasses on for most of the gig. I squeed really loudly “the sparkly pants”and Jon looked up into the stands and waved at me. Kirk had on blue jeans, a dress shirt, and a tan leather jacket. Garry was wearing a tan jacket, those lovely brown pants, and a blue T-shirt that was a little on the long side. He waved when we called out. Tim had on the Celtic cross jacket, blue jeans, and a khaki colour shirt. Andrew was wearing jeans, and a green short sleeve shirt. JD started out with a black skirt wrapped around his black pants, and he also had on a crisp white dress shirt, a lovely black and white striped tie, a blazer, and the requisite sunglasses. He waved to me too.

‘Suicide Blonde’ was explosive as usual and Andrew was in ultra drive. He was jazzed up and rocked all night long, as if someone lit a fire underneath him.

JD came down to the front to sing to the girls at the barricade during ‘Devil’s Party.’ He had a cigarette going by the end of the song. I could see April at stage left shooting some video.

I loved the start of ‘Mystify’ with JD and Andrew at the keyboards, and he said “you ready?”. Of course we were. He came back over to the keyboards and grabbed Andrew’s maracas at one point.

We had a nice little moment where JD was trying to teach the band French, saying that some of the greatest words in the world start with the word “French.”

JD did some extra deep “riding it” during ‘Hot Girls.’ This was just the start for the lucky mic stand who was in for the night of her life. The song went over well, and as it ended JD told us “You guys are a great crowd. Great.”

Before they launched into ‘By My Side’, JD read out a note he got before the show. The person couldn’t make it there for physical reasons, and he said it wasn’t going to be on the set list, but it was a favourite song of this person, so they were going to do it. We got some cool new camera angles tonight, with views behind Andrew and Kirk.

JD was building up to ‘Taste It’ Tonight. He asked the audience about a translation for tasting, and then the band launched into 'Afterglow'. During the song, JD tucked a Canadian flag down the front of his pants to cheers from the crowd. And we got a special treat at the end of the song tonight. Andrew played us some really atmospheric music to close out.

Jon gave us a big drum intro to ‘Taste It,’ and as the song commenced JD told us “My English is crappy. My French is even worse.” Then the whole band launched into a particularly raunchy version of the song, accompanied by tons of drum feck faces, and JD swivelling his booty all over the stage. But poor Garry got left out of the band intros JD gave. He took so long on the intros tonight that Andrew was already heavily into his solo when it came to Garry’s turn. Speaking of Mr. Beers, he's been kind of sedate for a few shows now. Not giving us as many feck faces or swivels as usual. But we got some exceptionally good microphone stand sex. And a large portion of it was captured intricately on the big screen. The Montreal audience seemed to enjoy the spectacle of the licking, sucking, flicking of tongue and fingers, followed by some very impressive humping. And the licking and humping went on until the end of the song. There was not much sax sex from Kirk tonight because he was on the side monitors too far away from the audience. As the song ended Andrew mentioned how beautiful Montreal is.

During ‘Original Sin’ JD was doing a lot of pogoing. He took a sign from the audience, ripped it in half, kept half of it, and held up the part of the sign that read “Thanks for being” above the Canadian flag. The crowd cheered.

JD is still having trouble with ‘Hungry’. His voice has been crapping out on that song for the five concerts I have seen. That did not happen in February at the gigs I saw. I think maybe he started off in too low a key tonight.

On ‘Never Let You Go’ Andrew was bopping away more than usual. JD held up a “Sax it up Kirky” sign while Kirk played. He did a crowd romp right into the floor seats about 3/4 of the way back, much to the joy of everyone there.

During ‘Need You Tonight’ Tim was sliding up to the audience in front. JD got an asshat from someone in the audience and put if on. At one point JD took the camera from April at the side of the stage, and took a picture of the audience, and of Jon and Andrew. He left off the “you’re one of my kind” again tonight.

Tim and JD were down front whooping it up during ‘What You Need’. Tim had the biggest smile on his face. Kirk and Tim met up at the back of the ramp, saxing and riffing together and then came back down together. And JD and Tim were doing the sliding thing.

Andrew went crazy on the tambourine tonight during ‘Kick’. And Kirk’s sax work was hot, hot, hot. Andrew, Kirk, and Tim were on fire during this number. Andrew missed tagging Kirk with the tambourine tonight, although it was an entertaining chase. JD got a “One” logo T-shirt from the audience and changed into it.

Then it was “Time to go to church” again. Amen brother. The sound was spectacular for ‘Devil Inside.’ You could hear each individual note perfectly.

There was a particularly poignant moment just before they launched into 'Pretty Vegas,' when JD said he was honoured to be standing in his home country in front of five brothers who believed in him. I got all misty eyed listening to him. He told us “Without a you there wouldn’t be an us.” During the song Kirk, Andrew and Tim were all lined up playing guitar together. And Andrew was really rocking out in ultra mode. When Jon stood up from the kit at the end of the song, the lights shining off the sparkly pants nearly blinded us in house right.

JD hung out on stage before the encore started. He lit up a smoke and just chilled. Then he sang part of the Canadian national anthem in French to wild applause

I finally got to hear the “Trust In Me" rap that ends with the line "got til Friday to figure the rest of this shit out." That was cool. I am hoping that his raps become a mainstay in the set list, because it is exquisite to both watch him deliver it, and hear it. I love poets. And JD is a lovely poet.

During ‘New Sensation’ Kirk had a Montreal Canadiens jersey tied around his waist. JD’s jersey read “0” and “Fortune.”

It was a particularly gorgeous rendition of ‘Amazing Grace’ tonight. Montreal was my Mom’s birthplace, and I started to cry during the song.

Under the glint of the disco ball, couples were embracing and kissing all around me when they played ‘Never Tear Us Apart.’ I love watching Andrew play keyboards. As usual JD’s vocals were stellar. He does this song so well. It’s become one of my favourites on this tour. Tim took off his glasses and really milked the moment tonight, getting a huge crowd response.

During ‘Don’t Change’ JD played the tambourine with Andrew. Jon went nuts on the end of the song again, and once again everyone else joined in with JD’s pogoing. At the end of the song Andrew gave his tambourine to a little girl in the audience who was in her mom’s arms.

Tonight marked the halfway point on my second leg adventure, and I am just not ready for it to be half-done. The Maritime weather did me in, and my bronchial asthma is really flaring up. That and all the late nights spent travelling by Greyhound overnight to get to the gigs on time. The number of gigs I'm going to in such a short period of time is getting difficult to keep up with. Given all that though I would do the whole Canadian tour given enough time and money.


Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil's Party
Mystify
Hot Girls
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Kick
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
part of the Canadian national anthem in French - to wild applause
Trust In Me rap
New Sensation
Amazing Grace
Never Tear Us Apart
Don't Change

INXS - Halifax, NS, Metro Centre, May 9, 2006

Audio-Blog:
There is no audio-blog for the gig tonight because I've been having technical problems with Blogger.com and I have not been able to resolve it yet.


Concert Review:

Nov. 10/06
I have a few more paragraphs to write for this review. It was one of the ones I had to do a lot of rewriting on due to both the JD birthday celebration fiasco, and the computer crash. I should have it back up as soon as I get back from the Ontario gigs. Here's what I have so far:

What an amazing night of entertainment!

It started out with Dave Gunning, JD's friend from Pictou County. JD introduced him as a brother and one of the best storytellers around, “give a big INXS welcome to my brother....” It was a good set to start the night off. And he is a good storyteller. I especially liked the story about being on the road with Stompin’ Tom Conners for seven weeks, and being interviewed for the gig based on his drinking ability. He also said that since INXS did not know who Stompin’ Tom was, and they didn’t get to Halifax often, he thought they’d do a Stompin’ Tom song.

Then Stabilo did their set. They are pretty good. The audience seems to respond to the songs that have gotten radio play. They get the audience warmed up a little. Not nearly as well as The Lovehammers did, but well enough. The guys from the band are quite sweet. We had a few drinks with them after the Moncton show.

Then the switch flicked on, and the five minute countdown began. I still get goose bumps when that happens, although tonight, I was trying to get out of the women's bathroom. The Metro Centre is not set up for easy bathroom breaks when you are on the floor.

Thanks to some lovely ladies from the Snarkgasm Batshit Bordello, I had a great 12th row seat, dead centre. And when the curtain came down to reveal The Pretty right in front of me, I squeed really loudly. Loud enough for the guy in front of me to turn around and wonder what the f**k just happened. I could see Jon clearly for the whole gig. He was wearing a lot of guyliner tonight.

Even though JD's voice was showing signs of wear by the time they did ‘Hungry,’ ‘Kick’ was back in tonight, as well as the Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap. I wonder what the running total of fines has been so far on this tour for JD lighting up on stage.

Kirk was on fire on sax tonight. I hope his daughter April made it to the show, because she would be really proud of her Dad.

I lost track of where the 448ers were heading after the show. I hope you had fun on your last night of the Maritimes trip you amazing Wangahs. I ended up having a quiet drink in a lounge with three of my fellow Batshit Bordello Babes, JustJules, Everclear, and Prettylush. It was great to finally meet you all, after squeeing on line for so long together. We had a very brief JD encounter as he arrived back from the show, but he wanted to spend time with his family so they were hurrying him along. That didn't stop Jules from calling out to JD that she had come all the way from Denver, and he ended up signing her ticket stub. I had a camera right in my pocket, and never thought to pull it out to capture the moment. Later on, Andrew came into the lounge, but my post-show glow was a bit too much for him. And I had my first pint of Keith’s Red. It was good. It’s too bad I can’t find it in Ottawa.

I have several more days on the road, including a very long trip starting at midday today, and going overnight to get to Montreal in time for the gig. I'm in the stands for that gig, so it should be an interesting comparison to being on the floor for the gigs. I hear the Bell Centre has amazing acoustics so I'm looking forward to the gig. And then they hit my hometown, Ottawa, which I'm really excited about.


Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil's Party
Mystify
Hot Girls
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Kick
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap
New Sensation
Amazing Grace
Never Tear Us Apart
Don't Change

INXS - Moncton, NB, Moncton Coliseum, May 8, 2006

Audio Blog: INXS, Moncton Coliseum, Moncton, N.B, May 8, 2006

Concert Review:

Nov. 10/06
I have some more work to do on this review. I lost the file, so I've had to rewrite it. I'll finish it when I get back from the Ontario gigs. Here's what I have so far:

Stabilo got a really good crowd reaction tonight. The Dirtie Blonde logo appeared on the curtains again tonight. Someone needs to update that.

I was in section 36, row C, about 20 rows back tonight. I was sitting next to Scott Bowen and his wife Debbie. Scott was a drummer in JD’s highschool band Bad Habit. He’s a heart doctor now. They were unable to get Halifax tickets, so they came to the Moncton show. Scott mentioned that the girls were wild over JD even back then. Scott was trying to get a message to JD, and I gave him some paper from my notebook. He must have been successful because after the gig I saw him with JD.

Tonight the lights went out at 2:20 on the timer, so by the time it hit :10 the crowd was in a frenzy. And we heard JD moan at :05.

I got to hang out with the 448 Wangahs and had a blast here too. After the show, the INXS tour manager was very polite to our whole party. He has a difficult job to do, and we tried not to add to his list. We've had a number of encounters with the band so far, but we've been very respectful.

We got the hotel lounge to stay open late enough for us to regroup back at the hotel before going out. We had a drink with the back-up singers, who said this is a great gig, and the guys are wonderful to both work with and hang with. They said it's the best working relationship you could ask for, and that the guys made them feel comfortable. They remarked on the 448 “Biting It” shirts, and one of the Wangahs got them a tank top version of the shirt.

When the lounge closed, we got our jackets, and on the way down some of the guys from Stabilo went to get into the elevator, and asked us "are you girls going down?" And we said, yes so to speak, we were, and they laughed. We invited them to come drink with us.

Kirk's daughter April is here in Moncton, and is going to see her dad play tomorrow. That should be special.


Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil's Party
Mystify
Hot Girls
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap
New Sensation
Never Tear Us Apart
Don't Change

INXS - Fredericton, NB, Aitken Centre, May 7, 2006

Audio Blog: INXS, Aitken Centre, Fredericton, NB, 7 May 2006

Concert Review: INXS back in Canada!

It was an uphill walk from the Hostel to the Aitken Centre, but I got some exercise and warmed my muscles to pogo at the gig. I had to get a ticket to someone out front, so by the time I got in to claim my front row seat (squee!) Stabilo had already started. I said a quick “Hi” to DrumTech on the way to my seat. I told him it was cool to see him play drums at the Today Show set-up. “Dirtie Blonde” kept flashing on the curtain while Stabilo played. It was funny. They were a great opening act. They had energy, were tight, and the audience recognized and responded to a few of the numbers. They got us revved up for the main act.

I still get butterflies in my stomach the minute I see the on screen switch turn on. And of course there was a huge cheer when it reached 4:48. The Aitken Centre was about two-thirds full, but you wouldn’t know that from the sound of the crowd as the countdown neared the one minute point. Then poof, the curtain came down with a flash of light, and I pinched myself because I was so close to Tim. And I had a clear view of Jon. I was ecstatic that my front row seat was not obstructed in any way. The long trip up here from New York City was totally worth being so close. There were big screens set-up on either side of the stage, and cameras onstage near the microphone stands. It gave the audience a great view of the stage, and some nice close-ups of the band, including Tim’s shiny new guitar. They even gave us shots of Jon drumming from behind his kit.

Kirk was wearing jeans and a white dress shirt. Andrew had on jeans, a jacket and a T-shirt. Garry was wearing the jeans with the piping up the front (!) and a T-shirt. Jon had an open-necked shirt with iron crosses on each shoulder, and white jeans. Tim was wearing the yummy brown leather pants, the jacket with the Celtic cross on the back, and a long sleeve shirt with horns on the front. And JD was wearing the lace-up jeans, and the black shirt with D-rings. He changed the shirt after Afterglow for the T-shirt with the skull and bat on it.

‘Suicide Blonde’ and ‘Devil’s Party’ started the gig off with high energy. There was a nice moment at the start of ‘Mystify’ with JD and Andrew at the keyboard.

‘Hot Girls’ sounded great tonight. JD was straddling the mic stand and riding it riding it. And I was liking it liking it!

Near the end of ‘By My Side,’ JD had a little trip over his big feet, and throughout the song he was aroused.

‘Afterglow’ was really powerful tonight. JD did a little blurb about Canada making it number one, and there was a huge crowd reaction to the song.

Andrew came out front to play guitar on ‘Taste It.’ JD did a rap introduction to the band. And we got sax sex at centre stage tonight. JD was nearby having his way with the mic stand. He was really going at the sweet spot, using his mouth and tongue all around it. It was like watching a tennis match as I flipped from Kirk to JD, Kirk on his back saxing away, and JD licking his fingers then rubbing the sweet spot and thrusting his pelvis. Tonight Garry was very sedate. He didn’t leave his little spot too often during the show.

There was a great Garry and Tim moment at the start of ‘Original Sin.’ Andrew was wild on the maracas, and the sax work was hot hot hot tonight. JD kissed Kirk on the neck toward the end. Garry spent a fair amount of time during the song straddling the drum risers.

During ‘Hungry,’ JD got really emotional over the love shown the band, and when he got to the line “I’m always there for you” he pointed to his Canadian flag and at the audience. It was really touching.

INXS really let loose tonight on ‘Never Let You Go.’ Andrew was rocking out with the shaker. JD was playing Tim’s guitar, then siddled up to Garry, before heading over to put his arm around Tim.

‘Need You Tonight’ was a definite crowd favourite, and cheers went up the moment the song started. We got some sliding, some shaking, and lots of crowd loving. Tim came down to play on the boxes in front of me, and I snapped a quick picture.



Garry started off on the boxes in front of me on ‘What You Need.’ I could just see the bottom part of his new dragon tattoo. JD did a crowd romp in house right, and ended up along the top of the arena floor side panels. It was precarious at times, but he made it without falling. I was impressed with his balance.

They skipped ‘Kick’ tonight. We could hear JD tell the band he couldn’t do it. ‘Devil Inside’ rocked as usual, and ‘Pretty Vegas’ got the biggest crowd reaction of the night.

JD chilled on stage with a smoke and a beer before the encore began again tonight. The crowd started chanting “JD.” To amuse us he put an “INXS Massage” sign on his crotch. I’m sure there would not be a shortage of willing volunteers.

During ‘New Sensation’ Tim was having fun playing with the camera by his mic, turning it around and upside down. It was really cute. And he really milked the moment in ‘Never Tear Us Apart.’ And then they were launching into ‘Don’t Change,’ and the gig was over.



After the show I met up with a crew of 448ers, had a lovely pint of Alexander Keith’s, the pride of Nova Scotia, and chatted with Andrew for a short time. And I had my first JD encounter! He was trying not to talk because his voice was very hoarse. I told him how much fun I had at the Today Show taping, and how much they rocked the Aitken Centre and that it was a great kick-off to the Canadian tour. Andrew was nearby and asked how I got to Fredericton, and I told him I took the bus. He said “You took a bus from New York City here?” And I replied “So did you.” He smiled, nodded his head, and clinked my glass. He asked how long it took me, and I told him it was about 22 hours. JD mentioned it took them about 18 hours. Before JD left, he said goodbye to me, and when he took my hand in his I just about melted. I walked back to the hostel with the biggest grin on my face, and slept solidly for the first time in three days.


Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil's Party
Mystify
Hot Girls
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
New Sensation
Never Tear Us Apart
Don't Change

INXS - The Today Show Weekend Edition, New York, NY, May 6, 2006

Audio-blog: INXS, The Today Show Weekend Edition, New York, NY, May 6, 2006

Review:

What’s better then getting the chance to see INXS play at Radio City Music Hall? Seeing the RCMH gig, and the next day getting to go to Rockefeller Plaza to see INXS perform on the Today Show weekend edition.

I got there just after 6 a.m., and watched DrumTech, setting up. He hadn’t been to bed yet, but had a wave and a smile, and a great big “hello”for me as I passed by. He even apologized for not having the time to talk. Polite and cute! RockPhoto has a keeper there.

While we were anxiously waiting to be let in, they brought the band in through a covered walkway on a construction site across the street. It was very early but we squeed, and they acknowledged us with waves. Especially Andrew who had the biggest smile and waved fervently at us. On a jaunt to use the bathroom at Dean and Deluca, DrumTech had been given the go ahead to soundcheck the drum kit, and I got to watch him play for a bit. A few people in the line up thought it was Jon drumming. After the drums levels were checked, they let us into the pen for the taping.

They did a soundcheck with JD, running through ‘Need You Tonight,’ ‘Afterglow,’ and ‘Pretty Vegas.’ Between songs JD covered up his throat from the cold morning breeze. From where I was along the left side of the stage I could see everyone pretty clearly, except Garry who was a little bit too far to the right. I was near Reckon from Switchboard, and I finally got to meet Armed and Dangerous from Rockband.





A little while later they came back out without JD and did ‘Pretty Vegas’ and ‘Afterglow.’ Partway through ‘Pretty Vegas’ Andrew came up to the centre microphone and sang. During ‘Afterglow’ he sang at the keyboards. We helped out, and Tim in particular acknowledged our on key efforts. A few minutes later they ran through ‘Need You Tonight.’ Tim was pointing to his heart during the line “how do you feel?”, and to his head during “whatya think?” At one point, while they were waiting for the count in, someone started playing Bob Marley’s ‘Could You Be Loved.’ I think it was Andrew. Tim started riffing, and Garry got going on the bass. It was cool to see them jam. I imagine they spontaneously do stuff like that in rehearsals and soundchecks.

Then they disappear for a bit, and came back with JD to record live for the show. JD introduced them with “Hi everyone. Today’s band is brought to you by hangover,” which got a lot of laughs. Then he said that NYC had the strongest coffee he’s had anywhere. Andrew and Garry had very fluffy hair, and both Jon and Garry were sporting some guyliner.

The Today Show hosts did a quick interview with JD and Tim. They asked the same questions every reporter tends to ask including how the fans old and new were taking to JD. We squeed loudly, and Tim motioned to the crowd for his response.

They did all three songs they rehearsed, first ‘Need You Tonight,’ then ‘Afterglow,’ and finally ‘Pretty Vegas,’ although they only aired the first two. The band played ‘Pretty Vegas’ for the audience gathered in Rockefeller Plaza. The camera caught me one or twice singing along to the songs. When they launched into ‘Pretty Vegas’ the crowd roared. And for the first time ever, in broad daylight, JD was singing directly to me, less than two feet away. I let out the loudest internal squee never heard. My goodness he is beautiful. Stunningly so.

When it wrapped up one of the Today Show crew said “THAT was cool.” He had seen numerous performances in the Plaza, but said this was extra special. It was. Unfortunately the same can not be said for the SOB that pinched the $50 from my bag during the taping.


Set List:

Need You Tonight
Afterglow
Pretty Vegas (didn't air)

INXS - New York, NY, Radio City Music Hall, May 5, 2006

Audio Blog: INXS, Radio City Music Hall, New York, NY, May 5, 2006

Concert Review:

The pre concert meet-up was at an Irish bar called Connolly’s. I spent close to an hour looking for people there, and then walked over to Radio City Music Hall. By the time I made it inside I had missed about half of Dirtie Blonde. The lead singer strikes me as a cross between Jewel and Grace Slick, but without the edge the later has. She has a powerful voice for a small woman. She mentioned that she had wanted to play at RCMH since she was a kid, and she was excited to share the experience with friends and family in the audience. That was cool. Another dreamer living the dream! The band sounded good, but was a little too mellow for my liking. I looked up at the tiers of people sitting above the main floor, and it was packed. And many people had glowing red swizzle sticks in their drinks that lit the hall up all over the place. I’ve never seen that anywhere else.

Having looked at where my seat was I thought I might get my right ear drum blown out by the speakers, and was glad that I had brought some ear plugs. But the acoustics in the hall were impressive. I had an obstructed view of the stage due to two separate stacks of amps, so when INXS came on we moved up to the stage to see better, and spent the remainder of the night battling security. They really interfered with our enjoyment of the gig. INXS security came over a few times to tell them to cool it. At first they threatened to throw me out because I wouldn’t sit down, when we were clearly not blocking anyone behind us, since there were no seats there. Then another one wanted to eject me for writing the set lists and notes during the gig, because he thought I was writing about the security guards. As if I’d waste time on them during an INXS concert. At one point one of them pushed me back and handled my breasts in the process. I made a complaint to the head of security after the show.

As the curtain came down the first thing I saw was Garry in leather pants. I let out a loud squee. He was also wearing a tan jacket and brown T-shirt. Tim had on blue jeans, that lovely striped leather jacket, and a shirt with a red T-shirt beneath. Kirk was wearing a striped blazer and pants, and a khaki dress shirt. Andrew looked fine in blue jeans, a black T-shirt and a jacket. Jon was wearing a blue T-shirt and tight black pants. And JD was the vision of loveliness in a light coloured jacket, the lovely red zipper shirt (squee!), and black cords. The pants were low enough for us to see his hip tattoo. It was so thrilling to see them play the dynamic ‘Suicide Blonde’ again.

‘Devil’s Party’ sounded great, but security was really pushing us around so I didn’t get to see most of the song.

During ‘Mystify’ Kirk came from behind Tim and started clapping in front of him. It was cute. Then Garry sidled up to Tim, and then went off shaking his leather clad booty.

I was looking forward to hearing ‘Hot Girls’ played live, but the song sounded off key. I loved the strobe light they put on during the song though. It was a very cool effect with all the architectural curves in the venue.

‘By My Side’ brought Garry over to us again, and my mind became mushy as he swivelled his leather clad behind right in front of us. This was followed very shortly by JD coming over and singing directly to us for a good portion of the song.

Before they launched into ‘Afterglow’ JD did a little rap, “accept, reject, love....” I adore the red zip shirt. When he leans over with one foot on the monitor, which he does fairly often, it shows off his hip, tummy, and chest at the same time. Garry spent a lot of time shaking it on the risers. At the end of the song, JD was right in front of us when he changed into a black T-shirt with a sparkly skull and bat on it.

During ‘Taste It’ Kirk gave us the most orgasmic sax sex I’ve seen yet. It was awesome. JD came over and motioned across his chest when he sang “Taste It,” then gave us an interesting little rap mid song. Then I didn’t know where to look because there was hot sax sex to my immediate right, and hot microphone stand sex to my left. JD was really licking the sweet spot and then licking his fingers and rubbing it, while Kirk was saxing away on the stage almost in front of us. He kept misting the over zealous security with his reed mister.

My second favourite song of the night was ‘Original Sin.’ JD came over and showed us more love a few times during the song. We got JD twirling around the stage, and major drum feck faces throughout the song. And Garry was very enthusiastically getting everyone to clap toward the end.

‘Hungry’ sounded a little bit off. It seemed slower than usual, and JD seemed to struggle with the key. Garry did a lot of hip swaying during the break in the song. Jon did the crossed sticks, but no twirls this time. Tim came right up in front of us playing and getting attention. When security started pushing us again, Tim wagged his finger at them. We appreciated that.

During ‘Never Let You Go’ Kirk was having fun singing “you should see Kirk in the rain” and pointing to himself. I looked down for just a moment, and Libby from Switchboard knocks me in the arm. I looked up to see Garry swivelling right in front of me, and I couldn’t find my camera to take a picture. JD did that little dance hall rap at the end. I really love that. He has a way with rhythm and words.

‘Need You Tonight’ was a big crowd favourite. We got some man-love as JD was humping Tim was behind during the line “something about you,” with his arm around Tim’s neck. I’d almost forgotten how hot the man love is between the two of them. JD did some huge standing jumps a few times through the song. It was impressive.

A big highlight of the night for me was ‘What You Need.’ It rocked more than usual. We got tons of drum and bass feck faces, and Garry showing us his assets while he was shaking it.

On ‘Kick’ I loved watching Andrew’s double duty tambourine and keyboard playing. This is another song where he always looks like he is having a good time. As the song was wrapping up, we got classic Tim sticking guitar picks to his forehead.

Then it was “Time to go to church” as they launched into ‘Devil Inside’. More Garry shaking his assets on the risers, and I loved JD shimmies and the way he was pointing to people. And we got renewed security guard problems as they traded places with each other. Le sigh.

Before the encore started, JD was sitting on the drum riser, having a smoke, and just hanging out. Then he started the Chocolate Chip orgasm rap, and I squeed loudly. I had been reading reviews of this rap, but this was the first time I saw him do it. It was awesome.

It was sweet to see Garry and Jon hug as they met in the middle of the stage, having entered from opposite sides.

During ‘New Sensation’ Garry and Tim were rocking and singing together. I loved watching Andrew do his arm wind up between playing the notes on the keyboard. At the end of the song JD fell flat on his back.

JD joined the backup singers on their platform during ‘Amazing Grace,’ and it sounded incredible. ‘Never Tear Us Apart’ was next, and following ‘Amazing Grace’ it made me teary eyed because it reminded me of how much I miss my Mom, and it made me think of Michael. JD’s vocals were stellar. Tim played up the moment, as usual. I couldn’t see Kirk playing the sax solo, but it rocked.

‘Don’t Change’ for me was the best song of the night. At the start of the song Tim kneeled down just to the left of us and got lots of attention, which he enjoyed. Everything about this song was perfect tonight. We even got feck faces from Tim near the end! And it was one hell of an ending. Jon went nuts, Garry kept in beat with the drums, and Tim was dancing around while riffing. It was a great way to end a very energetic show.

This was a wonderful gig to kick off the first of ten gigs I’m going to on this leg of the tour. I'm hoping for a reappearance of ‘Elegantly Wasted’ and ‘Perfect Strangers’ in the set list at some point.


Set List:

Suicide Blonde
Devil's Party
Mystify
Hot Girls
By My Side
Afterglow
Taste It
Original Sin
Hungry
Never Let You Go
Need You Tonight
What You Need
Kick
Devil Inside
Pretty Vegas

Encore
Chocolate Chip Orgasm Rap
New Sensation
Amazing Grace
Never Tear Us Apart
Don't Change